Lebanese Kibbeh in a Tray

"Kibbeh is virtually the national dish of Lebanon and to call it a meat loaf does not quite raise it to the heights it deserves. Its traditional preparation is dramatic. It requires a stone mortar and a heavy pestle called the jorn and modaqqa. The meat is pounded with rhythmic motions until it is smooth and pasty. All the neighborhood knows the sound of kibbeh in the making."
 
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Ready In:
2hrs 20mins
Ingredients:
13
Serves:
8
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ingredients

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directions

  • Select lamb from loin of the animal.
  • Pound the cubed meat with a teaspoon of salt in a stone mortar with a wooden mallet.
  • Remove meat from mortar when it becomes pasty.
  • Now pound onion with a teaspoon of salt and the pepper until it is reduced to a pulp.
  • Combine meat and onion and pound together until very smooth.
  • Wash bulghur well in running water but do this quickly so that it does not soften.
  • Press to remove water.
  • Knead bulghur and meat with the hands.
  • Pound together in mortar.
  • Add salt to taste.
  • Dip mallet in ice water occasionally to keep meat moist and smooth.
  • Properly prepared kibbeh must be pounded at least an hour.
  • Then it is ready to be eaten as it is, or cooked in a variety of ways.
  • Preparation time may be shortened considerably by grinding meat several times through fine blade of meat grinder.
  • Grind onion twice.
  • Grind onions with meat once.
  • Combine washed bulghur with meat-onion mixture.
  • Knead well, seasoning with salt and pepper.
  • Grind this mixture three times adding a tablespoon of ice water to keep it smooth.
  • To make stuffing: Heat fat.
  • Fry chopped onions in it until soft.
  • Add meat and fry until lightly browned.
  • Add pine nuts and continue frying until they are slightly browned and the meat has lost its pink color entirely.
  • Season with salt, pepper and cinnamon.
  • Pour off excess fat.
  • To make Kibbeh in a Tray: Grease a shallow 12 x 18 inch baking pan.
  • Pat a layer of basic kibbeh smoothly and firmly over the bottom of the pan to the depth of one inch.
  • Cover this evenly with with a layer of stuffing.
  • Top with a second layer of kibbeh slightly thicker than the first.
  • Score into diamond shapes with a sharp knife.
  • Pour one cup melted samneh or butter over all.
  • Bake in moderate oven about 20 minutes, or until well browned.
  • Serve hot or cold.

Questions & Replies

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Reviews

  1. There is NOTHING wrong with eating raw meat. You MUST go to a reputable butcher, one who washes his grinder after each grinding of different meat. You also must get the best quality of meat and let the butcher know that you will be consuming the meat raw. Eating raw meat in NOT gross. Alot of people - mostly of European/Asian/African decent eat meat raw and ENJOY it. I personaly eat steak tartar, and a version made of pork (YES raw pork!) but I only buy it from one German butcher in Toronto and consume it right away on fresh bread. I also eat an Ethiopan dish of raw cubed steak in a spicy sauce and sushi with raw fish. YUM!!!! Befor you start slaming food, you should try it. There are far more non North Americans who eat raw meat than North Americans who don't.
     
  2. My grandmother is a second generation Lebanese and I grew up eating this. We used to fight over the raw mixture and it drove my grandpa nuts. She put her mixture thru a grinder and used pecans instead of pine nuts. It is good made in the pan or as patties with the filling inside, cooked liked hamburgers.
     
  3. About step #13, I really think it is inadvisable to eat raw meat as this suggests (regardless of how much you pound it, it won't kill the bacteria). Besides the fact that this is just gross, it is really not healthy!
     
  4. This is a good original Lebanese recipe.
     
  5. I have always tasted my meat for flavor before I cook it. One day my Daughters saw me tasting my ground beef for stuffed cabbage and their heads nearly blew Up. It's something my grandmothers did and so do I. Oh well.......Looking forward to making this recipe
     
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Tweaks

  1. Very good kibbeh recipe ....I did end up adding a little more cinnamon and subbed venison for lamb. It tasted a lot like the kibbeh I have had at resturants...addicting.
     
  2. My grandmother is a second generation Lebanese and I grew up eating this. We used to fight over the raw mixture and it drove my grandpa nuts. She put her mixture thru a grinder and used pecans instead of pine nuts. It is good made in the pan or as patties with the filling inside, cooked liked hamburgers.
     

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